Japan halts some doses of Moderna
TOKYO – Japan suspended use of about 1.63 million doses of Moderna vaccine Thursday after contamination was found in unused vials, raising concern of a supply shortage as the country tries to accelerate vaccinations amid a COVID-19 surge.
Officials said contamination was reported from multiple vaccination sites. Some doses might have been administered, but no adverse health effects were reported.
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., a Japanese drugmaker in charge of sales and distribution of the vaccine in Japan, said it suspended use of doses manufactured in the same production line as a safety precaution.
It asked Moderna to conduct an emergency investigation and told medical institutions and organizers to stop using the vaccine produced in Spain and shared the production numbers that may be affected.
The Spanish manufacturer, Rovi, said it’s investigating and is cooperating with authorities.
“The detection of this particulate matter refers to certain vials of one product lot distributed exclusively in Japan,” Rovi said in a statement. “The origin of this manufacturing incident may be in one of ROVI’S manufacturing lines.”
Rovi said that as a precaution, the batch in question and two adjacent lots were put on hold.
Neither the companies nor authorities gave details on the possible type of contamination.
About 43% of the Japanese population have been fully vaccinated, with daily doses of about 1 million.